Band

About Phil Lesh

One of the strongest intellects and most extraordinary musical talents in rock history, Phil Lesh re-defined what the bass could sound like, and in so doing heavily influenced what the Dead sounded like. Instead of being part of the rhythm section, Phil's bass was a low-end guitar, and his improvised interplay with Garcia and Weir made the Dead the not-quite-rock-band rock band that it was. Raised in an eastern suburb of San Francisco, he began his music studies with classical violin before switching to "cool jazz" big-band trumpet a la Stan Kenton. Later he studied with Luciano Berio and composed avant-garde music in the realm of Stockhausen. In 1965 he attended a Warlocks show at a pizza parlor in Menlo Park, and afterwards his friend Garcia informed him that he was the new bass player in the band. Fortunately for future Dead Heads, he said, "Why not"? He and Jill, his wife of more than twenty years, have two sons. Phil presently presides over a repertory-theatre-as-rock/jazz-band called "Phil and Friends."

Member for

12 years

Submitted by PatRhino
on Tue, 03/13/2007 - 23:41

One of the strongest intellects and most extraordinary musical talents in rock history, Phil Lesh re-defined what the bass could sound like, and in so doing heavily influenced what the Dead sounded like. Instead of being part of the rhythm section, Phil's bass was a low-end guitar, and his improvised interplay with Garcia and Weir made the Dead the not-quite-rock-band rock band that it was. Raised in an eastern suburb of San Francisco, he began his music studies with classical violin before switching to "cool jazz" big-band trumpet a la Stan Kenton. Later he studied with Luciano Berio and composed avant-garde music in the realm of Stockhausen. In 1965 he attended a Warlocks show at a pizza parlor in Menlo Park, and afterwards his friend Garcia informed him that he was the new bass player in the band. Fortunately for future Dead Heads, he said, "Why not"? He and Jill, his wife of more than twenty years, have two sons. Phil presently presides over a repertory-theatre-as-rock/jazz-band called "Phil and Friends."

Who Are You?Where Are You?How Are You?

Be the first to know about the Grateful Dead’s exclusive limited-edition releases, breaking news on the band, community events, and so much more. It’s all happenin’!

Unable to process your request at this time. Please try again later.

Please fill out the correct information.

By submitting my information, I agree to receive personalized updates and marketing messages about Grateful Dead based on my information, interests, activities, website visits and device data and in accordance with the Privacy Policy.
I understand that I can opt-out at any time by emailing privacypolicy@wmg.com.

- We thank you kindly for joining the Grateful Dead's mailing list!
Customize your notifications to ensure you don't miss out on local events, giveaways, and more.

Please fill out the correct information.

Postal Code

Country

First name

Birth Date

By submitting my information, I agree to receive personalized updates and marketing messages about Grateful Dead based on my information, interests, activities, website visits and device data and in accordance with the Privacy Policy. In addition, if I have checked the box above, I agree to receive such updates and messages about similar artists, products and offers. I understand that I can opt-out from messages at any time by emailing privacypolicy@wmg.com.

TurnkeyToaster-html

Be the first to know about the Grateful Dead’s exclusive limited-edition releases, breaking news on the band, community events, and so much more. It’s all happenin’!

Unable to process your request at this time.

Please try again later.

Please fill out the correct information.

By submitting my information, I agree to receive personalized updates and marketing messages about Grateful Dead based on my information, interests, activities, website visits and device data and in accordance with the Privacy Policy.
I understand that I can opt-out at any time by emailing privacypolicy@wmg.com.

Thank you!

- We thank you kindly for joining the Grateful Dead's mailing list!
Customize your notifications to ensure you don't miss out on local events, giveaways, and more.

Please fill out the correct information.

Postal Code

Country

First name

Birth Date

By submitting my information, I agree to receive personalized updates and marketing messages about Grateful Dead based on my information, interests, activities, website visits and device data and in accordance with the Privacy Policy. In addition, if I have checked the box above, I agree to receive such updates and messages about similar artists, products and offers. I understand that I can opt-out from messages at any time by emailing privacypolicy@wmg.com.